


Character Development? In MY Story? It's More Likely Than You Think

by Mavarino



Category: There's not really a fandom
Genre: James Smith - Freeform, May Anderson, My own dang story, Original Characters - Freeform, Original Story - Freeform, ghost - Freeform, oh boy here we go - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-26
Updated: 2017-10-26
Packaged: 2019-01-23 14:24:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12509428
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mavarino/pseuds/Mavarino
Summary: James Smith is a lonely teen ghost who finds a friend he never expected.This is a draft and hasn't really been edited much.





	Character Development? In MY Story? It's More Likely Than You Think

When you die, there’s supposed to be some “light at the end of the tunnel”, somewhere warm to go, where everybody is happy and safe. Not some bedroom of a middle class seven-year-old girl. Of course some other ghosts go on to some type of “heaven”, he had seen it so many times yet had no clue why he couldn’t join them.

All these thoughts raced through his head, it was like he knew nothing yet at the same time, everything. He knew the Earth orbited the Sun, he knew what the baristas “secret ingredient” in her special brew was, he even knew the baker down the street cheated on his husband every other Sunday night while he was supposed to be at the bar, and he even knew that said husband would cry himself to sleep on those Sunday nights after he had found out. He knew he was dead, he was okay with it, he just didn't know himself. Of course he knew his name, his age, his likes and dislikes, but nothing else. What he understood the most was how infuriating it was to be alone.

What is family to a ghost? What are friends to someone who can’t even touch a single person? Why should he care if he saw some kid going Christmas shopping with their mom? Why should he care if someone loses a family member? Why should he care if some best friends go hang out in the park? No one in the spirit realm ever decides to stick with him so why should he do the same with anyone? I’m truly alone in the world, he thought to himself, not realizing he was pacing until he stopped dead in his tracks to watch the little girl run inside the house followed by her mother from school. He didn’t know why he hung out in the house, it just felt like someplace he could call home. It was a picture perfect family with a cat (he shivered, making sure it wasn’t around), a little girl, a father, and a mother.

Tiny footsteps ran up the stairs.

There wasn’t much fighting and it felt warm. Happy. Sometimes he would ‘participate’ in dinner, pretending he was one of them. He never stayed around when the cat was downstairs, though.

A small thump of a child’s backpack gently hitting the floor seemed to be the only sound in the bedroom.

Such a happy family! He flashed a small smile before remembering he was just pretending, that it would never be real. No matter how hard he could try, he would never be apart of something so… so… perfect. After all he was a ghost! A ghost! No one would ever see him, no one would hear him, no one would pay attention or care and as he sunk to the floor, he felt his eyes and nose burn and his vision blur. He would never have anyone. All these people in the world, all the places he has ever been, and the ghosts he’s met, yet he has never been so alone in his life. Drawing in a shaky breath, red hot, fat tears ran down his cheeks and dropping onto his lap. He silently pulled his knees to his chest to make himself as small as possible and stared at the wall before him. He was spectating a family he has always wanted ever since he could remember, and that is all he would remain as.

That is, until a finger tapped his shoulder a couple times, “Why’re you crying?”

It was as if he had forgotten she was a living being. Quickly, he wiped his tears with the sleeve of his gray jacket, “I’m not crying. Go away, kid.” He clenched his jaw and tightened his hold around his knees, trying to hide his face.

“I’m not a kid! I’m seven years old!” There was a brief pause before she continued, “I’m May Anderson. What’s your name?”

“James Smith. Now go away.” He mumbled, hoping the girl was satisfied. The name sounded familiar, way too familiar for his liking. Quickly, he turned around to face the the origin of the voice, puffy gray eyes widening at the sight of the girl. “You can see me?” He shifted a bit, sticking out his index finger to her, as if she had just announced some surprising news- OH WAIT.

A soft giggle escaped Mays lips, “Well duh, are you an idiot? Of course I can see you,” She confirmed by poking his finger, “Oh wait a second don’t move.” she quickly ran downstairs and returned shortly after with a tissue in hand, holding it out to him.

James reached out to grab the tissue, hand phasing through it. He frowned, trying again and again and again until he finally gave up, feeling his eyes water up again in frustration. He cursed under his breath, “How can you do this?” he gasped for a breath, “how can you see me and still be fine with it?”

He flinched when he felt the soft tissue gently being pressed against his cheeks and slowly relaxed, “It’s okay, Jamie,” May reassured, “are you crying because your eyes are gray? How old are you? Where are you from?”

James loosened up, knees falling down as he began to sit criss-cross-applesauce in front of May. He sniffled a bit, “My name is James, not Jamie. No I’m not, I’m seventeen. I don’t know.”

“You don’t know where you’re from?” May gasped softly, dropping the tissue on her bed before climbing up onto it and patting the spot next to her for James to sit on.

James stood up and went over to sit on Mays bed. It was a little small for him, his knees above his hips. He leaned back in his spot with his arms behind him to prop him up. He glanced down at his jacket and jeans, both light shades of gray. He assumed everything was gray because he was a ghost but who knows, he could’ve been a strange child. His parents could have been strange. Were his parents still alive?

“Are you a ghost?” Mays question surprised him, he didn’t think she would act so calmly about him being a ghost. After all, ghosts are depicted as scary monsters who haunt you until you go insane. “My friend said ghosts are creepy but you’re not creepy because crying isn’t creepy.”

James felt his self esteem lower a bit at that last statement. “Yea, I am. I dunno how I died though. Or what my life was like.”

“Oh, that’s okay! Did you know I’m in second grade! What grade are you in?” May asked, kicking her feet slightly off the edge of the bed.

“I don’t know. Probably eleventh or twelfth,” James muttered, “Do you like school?”

May nodded furiously. “Yea it’s fun! I get to be with my friends and eat lunch with them and play outside with them.”

James chuckled, leaning forward and bringing his hands together in his lap. Maybe she could see and feel him because she believed in ghosts, or maybe it’s just her childhood innocence. Then again it couldn’t be childhood innocence because he had been here for years, he could even recall the day May turned five and she didn’t even notice him eyeing the birthday cake in front of her.

”Are you hungry?” May asked, jumping off the bed and grabbing her lunchbox from her backpack. While she climbed back up and began to open up the lunchbox, James couldn't help but think about the last time he was hungry.

”No, thanks though,” he shook his head.

May shrugged and began eating what was left in her lunch, pausing every now and then to ask questions about being a ghost and comparing differences between being a ghost and being alive. James was fine with the questions and answered them as truthfully as possible, avoiding things like how he died and what his family was like. To be honest, he didn't remember. And James smiled, he hadn't smiled in so long he almost forgot how to. He smiled because maybe he wouldn't be so alone anymore.


End file.
